A life worth living
by Cailen89
Summary: a girl finds her way back to mystic falls, after a tragic life so far she needs to find a reason... will she find them there.. follows parts of the series damon/oc Rated M for later parts.
1. Chapter 1

AN/ I do not own anything you recognise just the figments of my own imagination.. Just had this idea in my head, hope you guys like it and let me know what you think. please r&r!

Chapter 1; Arriving at Mystic Falls

It was a pretty unsightly view, Damon thought as he finally found the source of the smell that caught his attention. He was looking at a young woman, covered in blood, yet seemingly unharmed, her hair was as red as the blood on her originally white shirt. Her blood smelled delicious, Damon couldn't stop himself from moving closer to the girl as his fangs came out and his face changed. He knelt down next to the girl who just started to stir, her face contorted in pain.

Blackness was all she saw, but she felt more free than ever before. Her body ached all over as memories started flooding in. Flashes filled with pain and torment filled her mind as tears welled in her eyes and she finally woke up.

As soon as she saw his face, this vampire's face, she scrambled back until she hit a tree.

"P-please, no more, please" she cried softly "I won't die, I can't it just hurts please not again"

Damon wasn't quite sure yet what interested him the most, the smell of her blood or what she just said. It seemed as if his mind was processing in slow motion as he just sat there staring at her for at least a minute before his face changed back to normal.

"Fine I won't hurt you" he stated seemingly bored, "what's your name?".

Her hands were touching the ground, sitting against a tree, she felt the ground between her fingers, wind against her face and she realised.. she wasn't there any more, for the first time in many years she felt the wind in her face, she was free. As she realised this, a smile slowly appeared on her face as she made to stand up.

"what day is it?" she asked not even looking at him, she even turned her back to him touching the bark of the tree, letting her fingers softly glide over it as if searching for something. As she turned around he was only 10 inches away from her and she held her breath shocked.

"You know it's considered rude to answer a question with a question." he said threateningly, staring at her intensely he noticed her tears were gone and she didn't seem as scared any more.

She stared back at him, not feeling too threatened "Maya, Maya Michaelson" she whispered as she stepped away from him, she noticed her body was weak still, she felt fatigued beyond belief. She was looking around as though she'd never seen a forest before, Damon noticed as he watched her every movement. The girl had piqued his interest, as not many human girls were able to do.

"Now, the date?" she asked softly turning around to meet his eyes again.

Damon looked at her thoughtfully, Maya felt uncomfortable under his scrutinizing look but stared him down even though she felt shaky and was barely able to keep standing.

"why don't you come home with me, so you can rest" he said changing the subject as he moved closer to her, he noticed she started to sway so he put a steadying hand at her lower back as he smiled to make his point.

"you know it's considered rude to answer a question with a question?" she said cheekily as she leaned into his touch, Damon laughed at her smart response liking her witty personality, especially after she seemed so scared of him at first.

"I'm a vampire, I don't mind being rude" he said smirking at her, "but seeing as you're so persistent" he sighed looking at his watch, "just after midnight so its 26th of July, happy now?" he asked after she let out a breath he never noticed she was holding.

"the year, what year" she asked almost frantically shaking his arms

"how do you not know what year it is" Damon asked laughingly, curious about her antics, though at the sight of her pleading eyes answered her, "2010" he said waiting her response. He tightened his hold on her when he noticed she was getting increasingly unsteady on her feet, though she herself didn't seem to notice.

"how dó you not know what year it is?" he now asked seriously, getting even more intrigued with the girl and even a little worried at her lack of response.

"I'm turning of age" she whispered more to herself as her body seemed to lose even more strength by the seconds, "it's happening, the spell is being lifted" she said looking relieved seconds before darkness overtook her.


	2. Chapter 2

AN/ don't own vampire diaries and i would love to hear what you think about this story, please r&r or pm me!

Chapter 2; getting to know me

Damon just put Maya down on the couch when he noticed more bloodstains were appearing and the girl was restless. A sound at the door let him know Elena arrived, he called her on his way home with Maya, the girl needed a new set of clothes.

"Damon? What did you do? Who is she?" Elena shrieked as she saw the unconscious girl lying on the couch, noticing the increasing bloodstains.

Rolling his eyes at her girly shriek and stupid assumptions he moved to stand next to her, watching the girl.

"I found her like this in the woods, you should call Bonnie"

Elena had already rushed over to the girl, resting her hand on her forehead, trying to find out what's wrong with the girl.

"what has Bonnie got to do with this?" she asked not taking her eyes from the bleeding girl on the sofa, carefully checking her abdomen were she saw small wounds healing already.

Pouring himself a drink Damon watched Elena take care of the girl, made her more comfortable.

"she mentioned a spell being lifted and her turning of age or something, figured Bonnie might be able to help, best if you call her" he said smirking as he downed his drink in one go. Elena rolled her eyes, Damon and Bonnie hadn't been on the best of terms lately so she had to agree with him that she should make the call.

"She's on her way" Elena said after she re-entered the living room, "do you know anything about this girl?" Elena asked, it was strange for her, watching Damon delicately move the girls head to a more comfortable position.

"Maya Michaelson," he said not taking his eyes of the girl, "I think it's her birthday" he added as an afterthought.

"What makes you think that?" Elena asked as she moved to stand next to Damon "you seem.. very worried for her, have you met her before?" she asked curiously when he didn't respond at first.

"No, I just found her, it was like her blood was calling me" he said confused, "can you change her shirt?" he asked as he moved away towards to front door, he had heard Bonnie's car pull up and went to get the door.

"So what do you want me to do?" Bonnie asked sceptically looking from Elena to Damon after hearing Damon's story of how he found her.

"she said something about a spell being lifted before passing out Bonnie, she keeps bleeding and miraculously healing with no idea how those wounds are getting there, It's obviously something witchy" he said exasperated.

"I get that, why are you so interested in helping her, doesn't really seem like you" she replied questioning his intentions. Throwing his hands in the air he walked over to Elena and very angrily told her to talk some sense in her friend as he was getting himself a drink.

Half way through his blood bag he heard a shriek from upstairs,

"Damon!" Elena yelled as he was already making his way back upstairs, "something's happening" she said as he walked in the living room, the girl was sitting up straight, all the candles in the room were lit somehow and there was a roaring fire in the fireplace.

"I don't know what happened" Bonnie said softly only a few inches away from the girl, "I just touched her hand for a second"

"she just shot up and opened her eyes" Elena added softly.

"Well do it again then," Damon ushered them, "maybe it'll wake her" after a moment of hesitation Bonnie moved toward the girl again, taking a seat across from her. She placed both her hands on the side of her face, Maya's hands instantly shot up and grabbed Bonnie's wrists. Effectively keeping her hands firmly in place. Their eyes connected.

Bonnie never felt a connection like this before, she saw flashes of the girls life in her eyes. The happier younger days, playing with her mother, her mother explaining her about magic.. And then the day it all went to hell, she saw the little girl watch in horror as her mothers throat got ripped out, after that it was flashes of a life of torture, things she'd never forget seeing. When Bonnie got pulled back into reality she saw Maya fall back on the couch, closing her eyes as a content sigh escaped her lips. She didn't notice the tears on her face, she couldn't get the images out of her head, she didn't notice Elena asking her if she was al right until Damon started shaking her, yelling at her to snap out of it.

"I'm sorry," she whispered as she stood up to make her way to the kitchen.

Exchanging a worried glance Damon and Elena silently followed her to the kitchen.

"that girl's been through a lot" she said as they entered the kitchen, "I'm not telling you al the disgusting details I had to witness, but she's a witch alright" she sighed as she was looking through the pantries for something to eat for the girl.

"We need to find some food, she's going to be hungry when she wakes up, looked like she hadn't eaten in years" she whispered the last part feeling sorry for the girl.

It was only a few minutes later that Damon rushed out when he heard the front door slam shut. Outside he saw Maya, walking across the grass.

She seemed to relish in nature as nature seemed to relish in her, flowers popped up were her bare feet had touched the earth and she seemed overjoyed. She closed her eyes as she felt the wind glide through her hair, brush past her skin, it felt like little electrical jolts all over her skin. In a good way. She felt her powers again, it had been a long time but she'd sensed them since she was very young, until they were taken from her. It was a joy to have that back, it had felt as though a part of her had been missing, ripped from her insides. She relished in it as she willed her mind to make the wind blow faster, it made her feel alive.

"How are you feeling Maya?" Damon's smooth voice broke through the darkness, "I'm sorry I failed to properly introduce myself before, my name is Damon Salvatore" he said, he moved closer to her holding out his hand, he felt apprehensive without knowing why.

Maya turned around, ignored his outstretched hand and smiled at him as she looked at him, "yes, you called me rude" she said smirking at him, "but I guess I should thank you Damon" she said softly as she moved closer to him, "thank you for not hurting me when you easily could have" she added as she kissed him on the cheek, "it must have been hard, resisting the smell?" she asked knowingly slowly making her way back to the house. Damon caught up with her easily after taking in what she just said.

"Why would you say that?" he asked curiously, completely intent on finding out why her blood smelled so good, why he smelled her from miles away.

"well," she said slowly "to make a long story short, I was used to lure vampires, they spelled, well cursed, my blood to smell delicious, but be toxic to any vampire that tried to take it from me without my consent.." she answered him honestly.

Damon looked at her with disbelief, "so you're saying that if I had attacked you , I would've probably died?" he asked sceptically as he moved closer to her, "so you are saying," he whispered in her ear as he quickly moved to stand behind her, "if I bit you now, your blood would kill me?" when he finished his sentence his mouth was hovering over the vein in her neck, but she stood still as a statue. Even though he was acting all dangerous and dark, she felt like she had nothing to fear for him, his close proximity comforted her more than scared her, she felt drawn to him.

"You might," she said softly, turning around to meet his eyes without stepping away from him, "I can't be sure, the spell might have been lifted when I got my powers back" she shrugged looking him dead in the eye, he was looking at her, contemplating.. He was surprised she didn't move away from him, nor did she back down from his stare. Until they were interrupted to Damon's dismay, Elena was calling them from the house, the food was ready.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N i don't own anything you regocnise..**

* * *

Chapter 3

After introductions and some pity stares from Bonnie which Maya didn't appreciate , she enjoyed the food Bonnie and Elena made for her and started feeling better. After a heated discussion between Damon and Elena it was decided she would sleep at the boarding house. "So, I'm guessing Stefan's staying at your place tonight?" Maya heard Damon ask Elena who was about to leave, there was jealousy in his voice she noticed.

"Yeah he's staying with Jeremy to make sure he's okay" Elena said looking sadly, Elena offered Bonnie a ride home which she accepted thankfully, they decided to meet at the Lockwood wake the next day.

After saying goodbye to Bonnie and Elena and thanking them for their help, Maya was left standing in the living room watching Damon as he was staring at where Elena had been, lost in thought.

"So.." she said awkwardly "maybe you could just show me where I could sleep?" she asked hopefully "a room like far away from everyone else would probably be best" she was rambling now as Damon hadn't responded and she felt the need to break the awkward silence.

"You'll stay in the room next to mine" he said bluntly though slightly amused at her rambling. She wanted to object, he could tell, she even looked scared and he wondered if it was at the thought of staying in the room next to him. It was better this way, scared, hated, that was fine, that was easy for him. Maya knew she should tell him her reasons, but with the state he seemed to be in, she didn't think he'd listen anyway. So she just nodded her head and followed him as he lead the way.

After having passed several doors already the silence was killing her, she was starting to feel awkward again, she never could stand those silent moments.

"you're rooms don't happen to be soundproof do they?" she asked hopefully when she couldn't stand it any more. Damon smirked as he looked at her, "got extra curricular activities planned?" he asked teasing her "you a screamer?" he added as he looked at her and raised his eyebrows suggestively. She was looking at the floor and Damon's smirk disappeared quickly and he opened the door for her. She made to go inside when Damon stopped her, he didn't like it when he didn't get an answer, he didn't really care at the moment that he was making her feel uncomfortable.

"are you?" he asked when she still hadn't responded

"yeah, I guess you could say that" she whispered trying to avoid looking at his face, she didn't like talking about stuff like this. She moved past him and he moved out of the way without saying a word, closing the door behind him.

After seeing the lavish bathroom Maya decided to take a nice hot shower, she hadn't been able to just relax in a shower for years so she was going to make the most of it.

Damon was still standing outside her door, after hearing her turn the water on he decided to make a quick visit to the hospital. He had promised Bonnie to give Caroline some of his blood to heal her. He'd check up here later.

The feel of that scalding hot water as they relaxed her muscles, yet slightly burned her skin, it felt like heaven to her. Having been stuck in that cabin for ten years, and now finally being free. Reality was starting to sink in, and she wept, tears for the pain and humiliation she went through, the loss of her mother, for feeling hopeless and helpless most of her life. She made a promise to herself to never feel that way again and she starting scrubbing. She still felt disgusted with her body, with what had happened , what they would do to her, it didn't matter that her skin was fiery red already and it hurt. She just needed to wash it al off so she could start over, to actually start living. She didn't notice the blood that started mixing with the tears and water, when the water started going cold she got out in a slight daze. She put on a bathrobe she found hanging by the door and collapsed on her bed.

It was only an hour later when Damon got back from the hospital, he had decided against going to the grill though he desperately needed a drink, he was tired of caring. Turning the switch on only reminded him of why he turned it off in the first place. After finishing his drink he decided to quickly check on Maya and get some sleep as well. He smelled her blood as soon as he entered the corridor, hearing her steady breaths he took that as a sign she was alright. He quietly entered her room to find her sprawled on the bed in only a bathrobe.

She looked thin, he noticed, too thin, there were scars on her legs and arms that he hadn't seen before. Her skin was still red, he wondered what she did to it as he left her room to find his bed. He didn't want to think about how painful her skin would be when she woke up, he didn't want to care about it anymore. So he did what he did best, being an asshole.

It was only about twenty minutes later when Damon got a rude awakening, dreadful screams laced with pain and fear filled the house. It only took him a second to get inside Maya's room and to try waking her. She was trashing around the bed though her arms and legs looked to be moving against restraints, there were tears falling from her eyes and the screams wouldn't stop. Damon was getting frustrated, he tried shaking her, yelling at her he even slapped her in the face, though not too hard. He never felt more helpless, not even the cold hearted Damon was able to stand these gruesome screams. So he did something he really didn't want to do.. He was going to call Stefan for help..

"what do you think I am, stupid? OFFCOURSE I TRIED WAKING HER!" Damon angrily yelled in the phone, "just get your ass over here and stop this incessant screaming before I kill her!" he said agitated. Ten minutes passed and Stefan still hadn't arrived, Damon was ready to pull out his hair when the screaming stopped suddenly, she was muttering words now and Damon went to check it out.

"Please just stop please.." she whispered tearfully, before gasping for air and screaming out in pain once more.. Damon couldn't take it anymore and decided to get in her head to see if he could wake her like that.

Moving onto the bed he pulled her up higher and held her as he closed his eyes to see what was going in her head.

**A/N thank you everybody who decided they liked my story enough to start following it! please leave a review, it really helps me to continue if I know what you think of it! I'll try and update sooner!**


	4. Chapter 4

AN/Dont own anything you recognise, let me know what you think of the change of pov, i might want to change throughout the story, I'm not going to put whose pov it is at the top i honestly think it should be written so that you understand so if it is confusing just let me know. and please review!

Chapter 4

_This is weird.. _Damon thought as he was standing in front of, what appeared to be, a vacation cabin, the surroundings were covered in snow and he couldn´t hear a highway for miles. He could however still hear her screams and they were coming from inside. He felt a weird anxiety as he was about to enter, he never felt like this when inside someone´s head before, it was like he wasn´t in control. Pushing those feeling aside he entered the cabin following the screaming he found Maya after a few seconds. He entered silently and stayed in the shadows, he was too curious about what happened to go confront her immediately. The men were standing in front of her, hiding her from view, he saw them grabbing some items from a tray nearby them, he could smell her blood as they cut in her skin. He started walking towards her not being able to look at it any longer when her screaming subsided, the men were laughing and walked away from her.

That's when he saw her, she was completely naked, chained to a wall, there was a bed in the room though it wasn't within reach of her. The men didn't notice Damon as he walked up to Maya his face slightly shocked, filled with disbelief. She looked a lot younger than when he last saw her, she couldn't be older than 14. He was walking towards her when she saw him. Her eyes were shocked and she quickly looked towards the other two men who didn't seem to notice Damon at all. She started crying again when he got closer.

"I'm having a nightmare aren't I? That's how you're here.." she asked meekly with a tear stained face, obviously to ashamed to look at him. Damon didn't answer, looking at this small girl, abused like that he just didn't know what to say. "Look, I'm sorry if I woke you up, but you should go.. I won't wake up no matter what you do, you have to let it play out..It'll be over soon.." she added sadly Damon, sensing her discomfort he merely touched her cheek and left... Though the cries kept echoing through his mind.

"so what did you find out in there?" Stefan asked when he noticed Damon had returned from his trip.. Elena and Bonnie were in there with him, they had arrived some fifteen minutes earlier when they found Damon and Maya laying in the bed together. Damon didn't appreciate the welcome back party, he had to think about it, process what he had just seen, besides it wasn't his story to tell. Bonnie had seen some of it though, he remembered suddenly.

"you know" he said as he looked at Bonnie, "she said we can't wake her" he added defeated as he moved away from the girl who's screams had turned to whimpers. He left the room without looking at any of them.

When I woke up I refused to open my eyes, wondering why the hell I was lying in such a comfortable bed. I didn't want to open my eyes, I was relishing in the feeling, letting it take me back to memories, or dreams of better times.. But I knew not to relish in those feelings to long, it would only make it hurt more when reality struck. When I opened my eyes I was surprised, I was wearing a soft and clean robe, my body wasn't covered in grime and blood. No wounds. But then I remembered, waking up in the woods, him, his vampire side, it drove away any belief I had in the life of my dreams, and after months of living there, inside my mind, it had started to feel so real that reality really struck like a bitch this time. Though I was happy none the less, at least I wasn't stuck in that room anymore, I was outside, my body had yearned for fresh air, to feel the grass between my toes. Honestly the last couple of months had actually been nice, just a few months ago when I was still stuck there, lying hurt and broken in the corner, a vampire came by, I was readying myself for the pain when he spoke softly.

"Remember my kindness when the time comes"

after that he left without even looking at me, a witch entered as he left and started chanting and for the first time I fell asleep and had no nightmares, instead I had a life. In those dreams I had parents who loved me, a brother and sister who cared for me, a boyfriend who I was living with and our two cats and it all felt so real. For a little while I lived the life that I could've had, and I was happy. But then I had an accident, I don't remember much of it besides waking up in the woods. Seeing Damon, facing reality, it made just makes feel like I lost everything all over again.

Getting out of the bed I noticed a full length mirror, I couldn't remember the last time I had really looked at myself. Well my real self, I remember my dream self clearly, though I doubted it would be the same. This body had been starved from food for years, been abused, mutilated. Standing in front of the mirror, looking at my feet, I took a deep breath and looked at myself. The robe was still covering most of my body and so far I didn't seem to look very different. My face was skinny, my hair was longer than in my dreams too. I slowly opened to robe and dropped it to my feet, several scars that I was sure my dream self never had. There were bite marks, stab marks even some random words etched in my skin. I barely noticed the tears slowly falling down my face as I softly touched the ugly uneven scars as I remembered how they got there.

There were three of them, they weren't very bright but once the fun of just killing me was over they made it a challenge to scar me. Seeing that if I died my wounds would heal they rarely scarred meaning the scar has to be formed before I die. So the challenge was to keep me alive long enough for the wounds to scar. And of course the "best" scar would win, unfortunately they were very competitive. Perhaps it would have been better if I had never woken up. It took me a good couple of minutes before I realised Damon was standing in the corner, looking at me, just looking. I quickly put on my robe as I turned to face him.

"If you've come to complain I warned you I needed a soundproof room" I snapped at him, even though I had been crying I managed to make my voice sound steady. I hated appearing weak, even though that's what I had been all of my life. Damon merely shrugged,

"I'll ask Elena to bring you some clothes. They want to talk to you anyway" he said shortly, he already left the room but I still said thank you, he probably heard it anyway.


End file.
